Therapist for Athletes

I'm a therapist for athletes. It took me fourteen years to comfortably make that statement, and it feels like the final step in a long transition out of my career as an athlete. In 2008 I decided to stop pursuing a job as a professional soccer player. My career did not reach the highest heights possible, but most people who have ever identified as athletes could say the same. I am extremely proud of and grateful for the breadth of my experiences

As a player, I tried to do things the right way. I was a hard worker, wanted it more, put the team first. I was rarely the most athletic or talented player on my team, but, until the professional ranks, I was always voted captain by my peers, which still fills me with enormous pride. From youth/club soccer, to high school, to college, I was seen as being worthy of leading, and my teams won a lot. I think I was a positive influence on my teammates, but I was often my own worst enemy mentally. I was mentally tough, but I was NOT mentally trained.

My self-talk was extremely negative: I was brutally hard on myself because I thought that made me better, and I didn't know anything about having a growth mindset. I didn't know how to move on from mistakes. I focused on the outcomes of games rather than my preparation because I didn't know that it's more effective to focus on the process and what you can control. I regularly got distracted by opposing players' or fans' words, thinking that it either “didn't affect me” (it did) or that it just “got me pumped” (which was only occasionally true). I “controlled my breath” only in the way it was taught to me to catch my breath when I was gassed, but I didn't know anything about using my breath to regulate my emotional state or to improve my focus. I tried to avoid mistakes, only because I had not yet learned about the benefit of a success-oriented approach. I was helpful to my teammates, but not to myself. These were the things that held me back the most as a player, not to mention the exponentially greater impact of mental health off the field that I was also largely ignorant about. I wish I had known then what I know now.

If we freeze time in 2008 when I decided to step away from my playing career, I would say that I had learned two lessons that stood out above all others:

• The margins that separate elite performances between the highest-level players are very thin. The differences between players get smaller and smaller the higher you rise in the competitive environment, so every little edge that you can find matters more and more.
• The mental side of performance (and life) is neglected relative to its importance and impact. This is an opportunity for a significant edge where the margins are thin.

My own lack of mental preparation and negative self-talk were weaknesses of mine as a player. Turning weaknesses into strengths is at the pinnacle of performance, so I dove in and attacked it like an athlete. I decided mental health was my next career path, and I went as deeply into the learning process as I could. I received incredible education and training through Cal Berkeley, the University of Maryland, Johns Hopkins, SF General Hospital, and Kaiser Permanente. I learned about the history of psychotherapy, different theoretical frameworks, and most importantly how to apply Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and/or Psychodynamic theories to help with each individual client. I have learned about mental skills for life and sports, and how to apply them for optimal performance in any situation. For more than twelve years now I have been working with people suffering from all levels of mental health and addiction issues in a variety of settings, and helping them improve their experience in life as well as their performance at work, school, home, athletics, or arts.

I have always had the plan to merge my two professional passions in life and work specifically as a therapist for athletes and performers, and in 2021 I started working with The Performance Psychology Center doing just that.Now is the final step in a fourteen-year transition away from my career on the field as an active athlete, as I start my own private practice doing what I have been pointed towards my whole life. I wish I had had access to these insights and skills when I was young, but I accept that I'm here in this new role, and am proud that I can pass them along to others. Anyone who has been an athlete knows how difficult the transition out of the life can be. Mine took fourteen years, but I finally landed, and I'm a therapist for athletes.